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World of Children Announces Top Nonprofit Leaders to be Recognized at Annual Awards Ceremony & Benefit in New York City

NEW YORK, NY – September 17, 2018 – World of Children®, a global recognition and funding organization for individuals exclusively serving the needs of vulnerable children, revealed today its 2018 award winners. Phyllis Keino, founder of Lewa Children’s Home, has been selected as this year’s Humanitarian Award Honoree for her efforts in dramatically improving the lives of orphaned and abandoned children in Eldoret, Kenya. Keino has graciously accepted the title of “mum” to hundreds of children in need, and Lewa Children’s Home provides them with a safe home, medical care, a first-class education and a caring family environment. The organization will receive a substantial multi-year grant and educational support from World of Children to help expand their program and ultimately impact the lives of even more children.

Keino will be recognized and celebrated at the annual 2018 World of Children Awards Ceremony & Benefit on Thursday, November 1, 2018 at 583 Park Avenue in New York City along with four other real-life heroes who will be recognized for their high-impact programs in the categories of education, health, protection and youth helping youth.

The annual ceremony will also recognize New York-based Devin Beresheim (MARSH Finpro) and his wife Sarah with the World of Children Board of Governors’ Award for their unwavering dedication to the organization and elevating awareness for child advocates.

• 2018 World of Children Education Honoree: Ehsan Mehrangais, founder of Afghanistan Demain, a non- governmental organization that provides education, school programs and rehabilitation to disadvantaged street children in three of the poorest neighborhoods in Kabul regardless of their gender or religion.

• 2018 World of Children Health Honoree: Sandy Kemper, founder of Smiles Forever, which improves the quality of life for impoverished children in Cochabamba, Bolivia, through free preventative and restorative dentistry, and nutritional education to reduce conditions such as life-threatening abscesses, painful cavities and malnutrition.

• 2018 World of Children Protection Honoree: Anta Mbow, founder of Empire des Enfants, a child-based shelter based in Dakar, Senegal that leads humanitarian action for children who have been exploited and are at risk of starvation, abduction, physical and sexual abuse after being forced to live on the streets.

• 2018 World of Children Youth Honoree: Caragan Olles, co-founder of Bright Young Dyslexics, the only organization to offer funding for private tutoring and assistive technology for dyslexic students in Wisconsin, in addition to in- school programs to educate teachers and students on how to accommodate students with learning disabilities.

World of Children receives thousands of nominations from around the world ever year and uses a uniquely rigorous vetting process to select Honorees, including extensive on-site investigations and an independent audit of each finalist. Recognized by the media as the “Nobel Prize for Child Advocates,” Honorees receive funding and educational support to help expand their program and ultimately impact the lives of even more children.

About World of Children World of Children unlocks the future for vulnerable children by funding, elevating and educating the most effective changemakers for children worldwide. Since 1998, the Foundation has dedicated more than $13 million to high-impact programs for children, led by nearly 120 Honorees working in over 50 countries. World of Children is recognized in the media as the “Nobel Prize for Child Advocates” and is the only global recognition and funding program that exclusively focuses on a broad range of children’s issues including health, education, safety and human rights.

World of Children has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, People, Town & Country, and Harper’s Bazaar. World of Children Honorees have also been featured by CNN, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Fast Company, Glamour, TEEN Vogue, TIME for Kids, and USA Today, among other national and international media. The Huffington Post named Co-Founders Harry Leibowitz and Kay Isaacson-Leibowitz one of the most inspiring “power couples” in the country for their lifetime commitment to improving the lives of vulnerable children around the world.

For more information, visit worldofchildren.org, or join the community on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Media Contact: For additional information or to request credentials for this event, please contact World of Children Director of Communications Kimberly Sanders at kimberly@worldofchildren.org.